Comic Book Review: Poison Ivy – Cycle of Life and Death #1

“Life. Death. Poison Ivy has power over both. But can she keep her friends and hold down a regular job at the same time? As Dr. Pamela Isley, she joins the prestigious plant sciences department at Gotham Botanical Gardens, but things quickly get complicated when a fellow scientist is murdered and it looks like the work of Ivy. Don’t miss the start of this new 6-issue miniseries!”

This new mini-series starts us off with Doctor Pamela Isley in the middle of an African desert in search of a very rare and old species of plant. It seems our botanist villain has taken a job at Gotham Botanical Gardens (funded by the Wayne Foundation, of course) as a researcher. There she has befriended Dr. Luisa Cruz, a fellow plant science specialist and a human. The two seem to have built a rapport and have respect for each other’s work. Poison Ivy seems to be in her element at Gotham Botanical Gardens, and then much to her chagrin, Harley… I mean… Dr. Harleen Quinzel, comes sashaying in. This seems to fluster Dr. Isley and she quickly agrees to leave with Harley. They end up at a bar where Harley is back to her natural self. Here, we are reminded that Poison Ivy is still very much a powerful villain as she flexes her botanical muscles in a display of her prowess, when a few of the males get out of line. She and Harley exchange some words that made me think they may not be the BFFFFFs we’ve once known. She returns home and in the morning, she rushes to tell Dr. Cruz some exciting news only to discover she’s been murdered in the lab (and looking very much like Poison Ivy’s M.O.)

What pulled me into this comic was the realistic approach that Clay Mann has taken in drawing these characters. There is a lot of detail and the characters seem to jump right off the page. Amy Chu, the writer, has almost humanized Poison Ivy and showed us how well she can fit into everyday life. Not only that, but she almost seems to enjoy it. She relishes in being surrounded by other scientists, and though she is probably more plant than human, I definitely saw a side of her I’d never seen before. When she is hanging out with Harley at the bar, she was still in her work attire, not in her “villain” costume like Harley which seemed unlike her. She appeared to want a “normal” life, at least as normal as she could have being part plant and all. She was also attached to Luisa so I’m interested to see how she handles this. Obviously, someone is trying to frame her… but who could it be?!

I’ve never heard of Poison Ivy having her own comic, so this is probably a long time coming. Who doesn’t want to get into the mind of Poison Ivy?! I like the direction where this comic is going and it is definitely about time! This first comic in this 6-issue mini-series is in stores NOW so visit your local comic book store and get your copy!